"I'm sorry," Buffy said, chuckling without meaning to, "did you just say that Connor was your son?"

"It's true." Angel replied, his voice soft, but firm. He looked to Connor for conformation, but the boy simply stood there, as did Dawn, captivated by the display he and Buffy were putting on. It was nothing new. Even when they weren't "together" their lives were dramatic...especially when they intertwined. Angel briefly entertained the idea of selling tickets.

"Have you forgotten that you're a vampire Angel? You can't have children!"

"Technically no," Angel admitted. "Look Buffy it's a very long story. Why don't we all go back to the hotel and sit down so that we can talk OK?"

"I'm not going anywhere with him." Connor said firmly.

"Fine," Buffy agreed. She then looked to Dawn. "First let me take her back to our hotel. Then I'll meet you there."

"I can take her." Connor offered.

"No," Buffy said almost automatically.

"Buffy it's OK...Connor's a warrior....he can protect me." Dawn insisted.

"I don't trust him." She stated, tilting her chin up as if in defiance towards Angel who claimed the boy was his.

"I won't let any harm come to her Buffy." Connor told her, stepping closer to her and looking her directly in the eye. "I swear to you on my life."

Buffy sighed. Despite her better judgment, she realized she believed the boy. She also realized she believed Angel's story. This child was indeed Angel's son, however unbelievable that fact may be. He had his father's eyes and his father's honesty and honor. He would protect Dawn, that she was sure of. She nodded her acquiescence and allowed the boy to lead Dawn in the direction of their hotel. No doubt he knew where it was from following them for as long as he had.

Buffy and Angel walked back to his hotel in silence. For once, she felt uncomfortable and unsure in his presence. Never in her wildest dreams had she thought he would keep such an important part of his life secret from her. How could he have had an eighteen year old son and not tell her? Why did he hide him? More importantly, who was Connor's mother? These were questions she knew Angel would eventually answer, but she found herself not sure she wanted to hear them.

She still loved him. She would always love him and until now, she had believed the two of them soul mates. She had convinced herself of the silliest things. We can sense each other's presence she thought bitterly. Yea, right! What else had he lied to her about? How could she ever trust him again? Who was he?

"Talk," was all she could think to say as soon as she seated herself, far away from him in his room. He sat on the bed, while she on a chair near the window.

"Buffy before you say anything, I want you to know..."

"Save it Angel," she said with a weary sigh that coursed through her entire spirit. "You don't owe me anything, least of all an apology. You don't even owe me an explanation about Connor although I am grateful for it. Let's just cut to the chase OK? I still have a job to do."

Angel wanted to plead with her for forgiveness. He wanted to tell her that he intended to tell her about Connor all along, but he knew she wasn't willing to hear that right now. She was hurt, angry and from the looks of it no longer trusted him as a friend or ally. He felt almost as bad as he had the night he had lost Connor, for he knew tonight he had lost something almost of equal value...Buffy's trust and loyalty.

Taking a deep breath he launched into an explanation, starting with Wolfram and Hart's resurrection of Darla and his subsequent decent into darkness. He told her how he allowed the lawyers to die, how he had fired his only friends, how he had relentlessly pursued them with malice teetering on the brink of insanity. Then he told her what brought him crashing down to the rock bottom. He told her he had violent sex with Darla.

If he even had the ability to hurt her any more than he already had, she hid it well. Her face was impassive has he described his violent will to dominate her and how the sex they had was somewhat akin to rape on both of their parts. He told her how she somehow became pregnant, although by all rights it was indeed impossible and how Wolfram and Hart seemed to think the child of value to their side.

He explained to her how Connor's human soul affected his mother and made her give her life so that his son may live. When he got to Wesley's betrayal, he found the words hard to form in his mouth. He had told Wesley recently that it was all behind them, but he still found himself seized by irrational and passionate anger when he remembered what Wesley had done. As he told Buffy of it, his hands began to tremble and his voice lost its composure giving way to emotion on more than one occasion. Finally he got to the standoff that he, Holtz, Sahjan and Wolfram and Hart had had.

"The only thing left to do....the only thing I could do, was let Holtz keep Connor. It was the only way to save his life. Just when I thought the child would be safe, Holtz jumped into Quartoth, the dimension opened by Sahjon. He took Connor with him, leaving me to believe I had lost my son forever."

Angel lowered his head, unable to let Buffy see his face as the memories of that night overtook him. Suddenly, he felt her tender touch on his cheek and looked up into the worried and loving eyes of the slayer he used to know.

"Angel I'm so sorry." She whispered, and he could tell she meant it. He nodded, touched by her emotion and unable to speak coherently for a moment. When words would come to him, he continued.

"You have no idea how hard it is to lose a child Buffy." He told her, a shuddering sigh overtaking his bulky form. She put a reassuring arm around him and for once he was the one who felt safe and protected.

"It must have been terrible." Was all she could think to say. She hadn't meant to feel tenderness towards him once more, but the pain and heartbreak on his face was too much for her to ignore. She still loved him damn it, and she always would.

"Terrible doesn't even begin to describe it." Angel replied. He met her eyes once more and smiled ruefully. "If loving you Buffy was perfect happiness, then losing Connor was perfect despair. I pray you never feel that."

"How did Connor make it back to you?" Buffy questioned, unnerved by his mention of their night together. It had become almost an unspoken agreement between the two of them that although they were doomed to love one another forever, it was taboo to speak of it. They would love each other silently and that way no one would get hurt. His admission of perfect happiness with her had thrown her slightly off guard and she was eager to return to the topic at hand.

Angel took a breath and told her about Connor's miraculous return aged eighteen years now due to time flowing differently in Quartoth and his fervent hatred towards his father because of the things Holtz had told him. He told her how both Holtz, Justine and Connor had plotted against him, leaving him at the bottom of the ocean until finally being rescued by Wesley of all people. He then described to her how he had kicked Connor out, but was hoping to someday establish a relationship with his son.

Buffy listened intently, not saying a word until Angel finally finished his story.

"Wow," was all she could think to say. "Angel...I'm sorry I attacked you like that. I know that Willow only wanted to help and asking you was the only thing she could think of."

"Buffy don't apologize. I was wrong. I should have told you I was there...or rather Connor was there...especially after what happened last time." He was of course referring to the lost day that had started out with Buffy coming to LA to chew him out for following her around Sunnydale and had ended with him becoming human, enjoying one blissful day with her then asking the Oracles to turn back the clock in order to save her life. Only he knew of it now and it still pained him every day to think of what he could have had.

"Regardless of who should have done what....what are you going to do about Connor now?" Buffy had moved herself back to the chair she had been sitting on earlier, attempting to re-establish a sense of business-like distance between the two of them. Things were getting a little to personal...hitting a bit too close to home for her liking.

"I don't know." Angel replied honestly. "There's something else you should know Buffy. Connor was not following you because I asked him to."

"He wasn't?" She echoed. "Then...why?"

"He followed you because he wanted to protect Dawn." Angel told her seriously. "I think he might be interested in her."